Forest of Dean, beloved, beloved

I've been meaning to say this for a while.

I'm the only person associated with FRED who doesn't actually live in the Dean. One of FRED's aims is to provide interesting and fulfilling volunteering opportunities for those living in the area. But in the early days of a charity, I guess you can't be too picky. It's a lot of work and you need help and support and there I was, taking redundancy at a useful moment and offering to come on board and do some fundraising.

Well, would you say no? But what Julie Carthy, FRED's founder didn't know, was how far back my association with the Forest goes. 

I remember little bits of visits in my childhood but it wasn't until I first started living & working in Gloucestershire age 21 & just out of 'library school' that it began to creep into my heart. 

With 4 million unemployed at the time, I ended up as a research assistant (and later project manager) of a Sports Council funded project based at what is now the University of Gloucestershire. Anyone who knew me at that time was mightily confused: 'Catherine....sport?'. It didn't quite compute.

Suffice to say, although I learned a lot about sport (including that it really is the taking part that matters in some cases), there were definitely times when 'fish out of water' syndrome came to the fore and I needed to escape. So my husband & I used to come out to the Forest at the weekends and ...... breathe. Breeeeeaaaathe. Deeply. Restoratively. At peace-ly (see, when you know words, you can play with them too!) 

I used to call it 'time out of time'. Like going away with Dr Who in the Tardis. It was necessary to me. Nutritious. Beautiful. We saw foxes and jays. But never a deer. Not for years. Not until I'd worked there for over 8 years, in fact. People who know the Dean find that astonishing. 

So many more memories I could share, but, to quote Rod Stewart: Forest of Dean 'you're in my heart, you're in my soul....'.  

Do you have a place like this in your life? Or perhaps you've visited the Dean or live there. Whatever your connection, perhaps you could consider helping us out with FRED? It's a rural area so transport costs for our coaches can add up. A little cheque made out to Forest Read Easy Deal would go a long way! If you'd like to send one, please send it to:

Frank Rainer, Treasurer, Oaklands, George Road, Yorkley, Lydney, Gloucestershire, GL15 4TL

with our thanks.

The 'good' aches are with me strongly today, outlining all the places my body worked hard with on Monday morning. I'm especially pleased about the ache in my calves which to me suggests I may be getting the legwork right. I'm going to read the swimming.org advice about butterfly stroke next, I think.